1. Technical Field
This invention relates generally to computer networks and more particularly to methods for enhancing the operation of a client browser operating in a multi-server computer environment.
2. Description of the Related Art
The worldwide network of computers commonly known as the "Internet" has seen explosive growth in the last several years. Mainly, this growth has been fueled by the introduction and widespread use of so-called "web" browsers, which allow for simple graphical user interface (GUI)-based access to network servers, which support documents formatted as so-called "web pages". The "World Wide Web" (WWW) is that collection of servers of the Internet that utilize the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP). HTTP is a known application protocol that provides users access to files (which can be in different formats such as text, graphics, images, sound, video, etc.) using a standard page description language known as Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). HTML provides basic document formatting and allows the developer to specify "links" to other servers and files. Use of an HTML-compliant client browser involves specification of a link via a Uniform Resource Locator or "URL". Upon such specification, the client makes a tcp/ip request to the server identified in the link and receives a "web page" (namely, a document formatted according to HTML) in return.
There is a finite time period between the time the user initiates the link and the return of the web page. Even when the web page is returned quickly, there is an additional time period during which formatting information must be processed for display on the display interface. For example, most web browsers display inline images (namely images next to text) using an X bit map (XBM) or .gif format. Each image takes time to process and slows downs the initial display of the document. The user typically "sees" an essentially unrecognizable "image" on the display screen which only gradually comes into focus. It is only after the entire image is downloaded from the server and then processed by the browser that the user can fully access the web page itself. This "waiting" period is even longer when the client machine has a relatively slow modem, and often the user will have to wait many seconds before being able to see the in-line image and/or begin using the web page. This problem will be exacerbated when the next generation browser technology (such as Netscape Navigator 2.0) becomes more widely implemented because such browsers are being designed to handle much more complex download formats (for more interactive, dynamic displays).